Durban rescuer Nick Evans said the rescue of a Nile monitor lizard from a narrow roof in the Inanda area, north of Durban, on Thursday, was the worst lizard rescue he has experienced.
Evans accompanied friends Euan Genevier and Craig Cordier on the call-out, arriving at the property after dark.
“This lizard had been scaring the residents, who were worried that it was a snake. They would constantly hear it moving along their ceiling board.”
He said as he climbed into the ceiling, he heard the sound of a monitor running, but could not see it.
“What I could see was the most cramped ceiling I had ever been in. The space between the top and bottom beams was less than a metre. I knew this was going to be an incredibly difficult and uncomfortable rescue.”
Evans said he had to squirm his way through the narrow space in the roof.
“To add to my worries, the beams were very loosely connected, and some of the downward-facing beams, connecting the bottom and top ones, were not connected. The ceiling board was extremely flimsy, more so than average. I was convinced I'd be crashing through this roof. While the house looked very nice, the roof was not built for people to climb in.”
Cordier followed him into the roof while Genevier tried navigating across from a trapdoor on the other side of the roof, he said.
Evans said moments later he caught a strong whiff of the monitor lizard.
“Suddenly, I heard it moving above me! It was on top of the material that is placed under the roof sheets (it’s usually plastic). It sprinted towards Craig, but went around him and went quiet, before moving again, going around and stopping a few metres ahead of me.
“The lizard could run around the roof. We could barely move. We were not sure how we were going to grab it.”
After some time Evans said the lizard was above him again. He said he pushed his hand through the roof plastic and grabbed its tail.
In the position Evans was in on his back, with the lizard above him, he said he was concerned that the lizard would bite him or worse, “spray vile, dark, smelly fluid onto my face”.
“Fortunately, it didn’t do that. I’d probably have let myself fall through the roof if it did.”
Evans said Cordier managed to crawl painfully towards him and grab the tail, while Genevier crawled towards them with a welding glove.
“I put that on, and reached into the material, as Craig gently pulled the lizard out, and I grabbed it, just down from its neck. It spun around and latched onto the glove. We had it! Now we just needed to get out of there.”
They managed to put the lizard in a box with a lid, then began making their way out of the roof.
“Our bodies were broken from that. I have climbed into many roofs, in bushy trees, etc. This was the most difficult climb of my life. But we succeeded! A good team effort!”
Evans said the residents were relieved and grateful.
“We had a good laugh at how ridiculous that rescue was, afterwards.
“After taking various measurements and weights, the lizard has since been released.”